In front of a sold-out purple sea at Chase Center, the Golden State Valkyries overcame an early deficit and shooting struggles to beat the Atlanta Dream 68-64 and win Game 1 of the WNBA Finals.
The fortress they call Ballhalla was in turmoil in a match that featured seven lead changes and six ties. Valkyries star Gabby Williams led all scorers with 26 points on 8-of-22 shooting. She made two decisive free throws with 4.1 seconds left to ice the game. No other Golden State player has scored in double figures.
For Atlanta, it was their first loss of the 2026 playoffs, but perhaps that was expected at one point in a series designed to be a home-court advantage showdown.
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The Valkyries led the league with 17 home wins during the regular season and swept the regular season series against the Dream, two of those three wins at Chase Center.
Allisha Gray led the Dream with 19 points on 5-of-19 shooting, but was held scoreless in the fourth quarter. Gray made his return to action after missing Games 2 and 3 of the Semifinals due to a hand injury suffered in Game 1 against the New York Liberty.
Angel Reese added 14 points and 12 rebounds but failed to score in the second half. Rhyne Howard struggled from the field, making 12 points and only three field goals.
Amidst a flurry of stars appearing in the score, it was a defensive showdown between two of the WNBA’s best it did not disappoint. Atlanta entered the series averaging a league-leading 92.6 points per game in the 2026 playoffs, while Golden State averaged 87.
Both teams shot just 32 percent from the field in the opener.
The Valkyries forced 12 Atlanta turnovers and scored 17 points. Golden State center Kiah Stokes recorded four blocks in the first half to add to the team’s total of ten.
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Williams, who entered the Finals averaging 22.7 points per game in the postseason, was stifled early by Dream defenders and missed her first four field goal attempts before making three with 8:39 left in the second quarter.
Williams caught fire after that and Atlanta scrambled to find an answer. His three-pointer with 1:52 left in the half saw the crowd at Chase Center erupt and give Golden State a 40-37 lead — its first since trailing 14-13 in the first quarter.
Behind Williams’ 16 points in the second quarter, the Valkyries finished the half up 10-2 to take full advantage of the momentum.
“I was just excited to be here,” Williams told WNBA on NBC’s Ashley ShahAhmadi after the game of her second-quarter warmup. “Once we all started having fun and the excitement started building, we started to find our way.”
Golden State struggled to maintain that swing in the third quarter as the Dream outscored the hosts 17-9, but Atlanta shot just 2 of 14 in the fourth. Gray was 0 of 6, Howard 0 of 3 and Reese missed his only field goal attempt in the final period.
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The visitors had the ball with 23.8 seconds left and were down by two points, but Golden State’s suffocating defense forced nearly 16 seconds to bleed before Gray missed a three with 7.9 seconds left.
“We always know we’ll find a way one way or another,” Williams told ShahAhmadi. “There was a lid on that basket tonight, but that’s why we rely on our defense.”
The WNBA Finals continue Monday, with Game 2 scheduled to begin at 8 p.m. ET on USA Network and Peacock.
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